Justification:Naso brachycentron is widespread throughout the Indo-Pacific region. It is occasionally found in most parts of its range. It is a targeted food fish but there have been no indications of population declines by fishing. There are no major threats and it is found in marine protected areas. It is therefore listed as Least Concern.

Naso brachycentron is found from East Africa to French Polynesia, northwards to Ryukyu Islands, Japan, southwards to the Great Barrier Reef, Vanuatu and New Caledonia. Records from Hong Kong (To and Situ 2005) and Cook Islands (M. Kulbicki pers. comm. 2011) need to be verified.

Naso brachycentron was recorded as occasional in terms of relative abundance in Milne Bay Province, northern Bismarck Sea, Papua New Guinea and in Raja Ampat, Indonesia (Allen 2003, 2009, 2003b). It is rare in the American Samoa National Park (National Park of Samoa Checklist of Fishes, accessed 21 April 2010). In the Philippines, it is occasional in the central Visayas (R. Abesamis, C. Nanola and B. Stockwell pers. comm. 2010) and common in Tubbataha (S. Conales, Jr. pers. comm. 2010).

In Kenya, landings during 1978-2001 for families that are less important in commercial catches (e.g., scarinae and Acanthuridae) showed rising catches (1978-1984) followed by a general decline during the 1990s, but the landings for the scarinae showed a rising trend in recent years (Kaunda-Arara et al. 2003).

Naso brachycentron adults may be seen in shallow reef areas but are usually difficult to approach. It is occasionally encountered in small aggregations (Randall 2001a). It feeds on macroalgae (Choat et al. 2004). It is classified as a browser (Choat pers obs. in Green and Bellwood 2009). Maximum age recorded was 31 years (Choat and Robertson 2002a).

The sexes are separate and there is evidence of sexual dimorphism in the caudal knives which are relatively larger in males (J.H. Choat pers. comm. 2010).

Surgeonfishes show varying degrees of habitat preference and utilization of coral reef habitats, with some species spending the majority of their life stages on coral reef while others primarily utilize seagrass beds, mangroves, algal beds, and /or rocky reefs. The majority of surgeonfishes are exclusively found on coral reef habitat, and of these, approximately 80% are experiencing a greater than 30% loss of coral reef area and degradation of coral reef habitat quality across their distributions. However, more research is needed to understand the long-term effects of coral reef habitat loss and degradation on these species' populations. Widespread coral reef loss and declining habitat conditions are particularly worrying for species that recruit into areas with live coral cover, especially as studies have shown that protection of pristine habitats facilitate the persistence of adult populations in species that have spatially separated adult and juvenile habitats (Comeros-Raynal et al. 2012).

In-Place Research, Monitoring and PlanningIn-Place Land/Water Protection and Management Conservation sites identified:Yes, over part of range Occur in at least one PA:YesIn-Place Species ManagementIn-Place Education